. Reptiles and birds. A popular account of the various orders; with a description of the habits and economy of the most interesting. . ere. Itis of elegant form, smaller than the Goosander, being only fifteeninches in length. The plumage of the head is full, soft, and blendedthe upper part of the head and nape elongated, forming a graduallynarrowing crest; the wings short, rather narrow, slightly convex, andpointed—when closed reaching to within an inch and a half from theend of the tail. The male bird, at maturity, has a great spot of 242 REPTILES AND BIRDS. greenish black on each side of the
. Reptiles and birds. A popular account of the various orders; with a description of the habits and economy of the most interesting. . ere. Itis of elegant form, smaller than the Goosander, being only fifteeninches in length. The plumage of the head is full, soft, and blendedthe upper part of the head and nape elongated, forming a graduallynarrowing crest; the wings short, rather narrow, slightly convex, andpointed—when closed reaching to within an inch and a half from theend of the tail. The male bird, at maturity, has a great spot of 242 REPTILES AND BIRDS. greenish black on each side of the bill, and a longitudinal one on theocciput The tufted crest, neck, scapulars, small coverts of the wing,and all the lower parts are pure white ; the upper part of the back,the two crescents under the sides of the breast, and the edges of thescapulars are deep black; the tail is ash-coloured ; sides and thighsare varied with ash-coloured zigzags ; bill, tarsi, and toes are bluishash; webs black, and the iris brown. In habit the Smew greatlyresembles the Goosanders. The Goose {Ansa-) forms a special genus r,mong the Fig. c< -The Sirew. It is a bird which is often spoken of with contempt, though veryimproperly, for few birds are able to afford mankind a greattr amountof service. The Wild Geese {Anser). The Wild Goose, though by no means elegant in form, has none ofthe awkwardness of the Domestic Goose, which is generally supposedto be descended from it. The body of the Grey-lag Goose is largeand full; the neck long, at its upper part slender; the head propor-tionately small, ovate, oblong, and rather compressed; the feathersof the head are small, short, rounded and blended, of a greyishbrown ; those of the upper part of the neck small and oblong, andarranged in ridges with deep intervening grooves, gradually gettingpaler until it fades into greyish white; the wings are long, reaching THE HISSING OF THE GOOSE. 243 .nearly to the end of the tail, the feathers of t
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectbirds, booksubjectrep
